TEFL Rochester New York

19. British english vs American english American english is the form of english used in the united states, including all english dialects used in the united states. British english is the form of english used in the United Kingdom, including all english dialects used in the United Kingdom ("American and British english differences"). While Americans and Britons have little to no problems understanding each other - despite the different meanings of some words - it is often difficult for non-native english speakers to understand one or the other depending on where they have learned their english, and to which they have been more exposed. For example, an immigrant to the united states, who studied exclusively American english and had little to no contact with Britons, may have difficulty understanding British accents. english does not have a standard form that is generally accepted as is the case with the majority of European languages, therefore it is important for teachers in esl classrooms to make note of these differences. Despite the cross-cultural influences, American english and British english have vast differences in vocabulary, grammar, spelling, and, most importantly, pronunciation. One of the biggest differences, which can cause a great deal of trouble in the classroom, is the pronunciation of words in American english and British english. This could potentially cause great divides in the classroom, particularly within multilingual class settings where students may have been more exposed to one type of english versus the other. In many cases, this exposure stems from the english used in movies which are shwon in the country. If they have been more exposed to American films, they will be more familiar with American dialect than British and vice versa. However, in recent years due to such phenomena as Harry Potter and Downton Abbey, there have been many "Britishisms" entering the American dialect, where before it was "Americanisms" entering British dialects (Guttenplan). Aside from pronunciation, there are also differences in vocabulary. There are many different words used in British and American english, and oftentimes native english speakers from one country will not understand those from the other country. Some words used in British english are not used by American, such as "chemist" to signify a drug store, or "nappy" to mean a diaper. At the same time, there are words which exist in both languages, but mean vastly different things. "Flat" in American english means smooth or even, in British english is used to mean an apartment. Another example is the word "mad". In American english "mad" is synonymous with angry, while in British english, it is synonymous with crazy ("British english and American english"). Grammar also changes from American english to British english. Speakers of British english also use the present perfect tense more often than Americans do. This could lead British teachers to mark certain things wrong that American teachers would mark as correct. The same is true for spelling. While many words are spelled the same in both forms of english, there are some exceptions. Some words that in British english end in "-tre" become "-ter" in American english, such as theatre versus theater. The same is true with "-or" and "-our", such as in color and colour ("British english"). There are other words which meet these patterns, and even some that may be longer or shorter depending on which language is being used. What is most important for an esl teacher to keep in mind is that students may have been exposed to the other form of english before their current class, and penalizing them for grammar or spelling simply because it is from the other form of english is harsh and unfair to a student who has simply become accustomed to one over another. Until there is a standard form of english, it is important for all esl classrooms abroad to function on a scale where both forms can be accepted. It is different, of course, in cases where the students are learning the language either in the united states or in the United Kingdom. In such cases, it would be in the best interests of the students to learn the proper forms for the country they are currently inhabiting.